“Neither did I,” ses the woman. “P’raps that’s where we both made a mistake.”
“You get out of my ’ouse!” ses my missus, very sudden. “Go on, afore I put you out.”
“Not without my Bill,” ses the woman. “If you lay a finger on me I’ll scream the house down.”
“You brought her ’ere,” ses my wife, turning to me, “now you can take ’er away?”
“I didn’t bring ’er,” I ses. “She follered me.”
“Well, she can foller you agin,” she ses. “Go on!” she ses, trembling all over. “Git out afore I start on you.”
I was in such a temper that I daren’t trust myself to stop. I just gave ’er one look, and then I drew myself up and went out. ’Alf the fools in our street was standing in front of the ’ouse, ’umming like bees, but I took no notice. I held my ’ead up and walked through them with that woman trailing arter me.
I was in such a state of mind that I went on like a man in a dream. If it had ha’ been a dream I should ha’ pushed ’er under an omnibus, but you can’t do things like that in real life.
“Penny for your thoughts, Bill,” she ses. I didn’t answer her.
“Why don’t you speak to me?” she ses.